Police and Crime Commissioner David Lloyd has welcomed Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary’s (HMIC) report of Police Effectiveness for Hertfordshire Constabulary which has rated its overall performance as “Good”.

In particular, the report notes Hertfordshire’s strong and established commitment to local policing and partnership working. The report follows on from last week’s HMIC report for Police Legitimacy which also rated Hertfordshire as Good.

Commissioner Lloyd was referring to HMIC’s Police Effectiveness report, published today (18th February), which says; “HMIC judges Hertfordshire Constabulary to be good overall in the way it keeps people safe and reduces crime. The constabulary works very well to prevent crime and anti-social behaviour and protects most victims well, but improvement is needed in the way vulnerable people are protected from harm. The constabulary’s approach to investigating crime and managing offenders is also good. The constabulary works well to tackle serious and organised crime.”

Mr Lloyd said: “I am pleased that the report recognises the excellent work being done in Hertfordshire by neighbourhood police officers and PCSOs working in partnership with local councils. Protecting local policing has been a key aim of my Police and Crime plan and it is great to know that it is working so effectively within the county. My commitment to local policing in Hertfordshire is in contrast to a broad national trend of moving away from community policing which the HMIC has commented on, and I am determined to maintain local policing in the county.”

Mr Lloyd continued: “Whilst I am pleased with this good report for the constabulary, I am concerned that the Force still has work to do in protecting vulnerable people – a key element of my Police and Crime plan. I am reassured that recent investment of extra resources into specialist services that support those who are vulnerable and keep them safe has been recognised. The report also recognised that the constabulary has made good progress since last year, improving its approach to domestic abuse and setting up a county-wide multi-agency safeguarding hub to provide more effective joined-up services with partner organisations to safeguard children better. I will continue to ensure that the Chief Constable remains focussed on improving this crucial area of policing.”

Chief Constable Andy Bliss said: “This report has recognised our strong commitment to crime and anti-social behaviour prevention and keeping people safe. It also recognises that we work well in partnership activities and have a strong focus on prevention and local problem-solving through the community safety partnership structures in each district of the county. We will continue to improve our services for vulnerable people, helped by the facts, recognised in the report, that police officers and staff across the constabulary understand and share this commitment and that we are investing significant effort and resource to improve services.”

Her Majesty’s Inspector Zoë Billingham said: “I am very pleased that the force has a strong focus on providing a good service to victims through an established commitment to neighbourhood policing. The force is strongly committed to crime prevention and is judged to be good in this vitally important area of policing. Police officers, PCSOs and staff work well with partners, like local councils and other organisations, to solve problems in neighbourhoods. This includes early intervention to prevent anti-social behaviour escalating.

“The force is strongly committed to crime prevention and keeping its communities safe. A good example is ‘Operation Manhunt’, where PCSOs visit elderly people in areas where there have been distraction burglaries giving crime prevention advice and putting in place safeguarding measures – like cameras – to provide reassurance and to help secure evidence.

“Hertfordshire Constabulary’s approach to investigating crime and managing offenders is also good. Although there are some inconsistencies in the quality of the force’s initial investigations, the quality of the subsequent investigations is good. The force uses new technology well to target prolific offenders and to prevent re-offending.

“I am pleased that Hertfordshire Constabulary is working well with other forces in the region to prevent serious and organised crime. The force is doing some good work in schools to identify young people who may be at risk of being drawn into organised crime and acting early to divert them away from a life of crime.”